Glitch
by the-Skye-is-the-limit
Summary: Glitch - a short-lived fault in a system. It is often used to describe a transient fault that corrects itself, and is therefore difficult to troubleshoot. "It's been a month since I got here and three days since i arrived at the Rockbells … I have not developed any new theories on my appearance here, but then again, I didn't expect to… I miss them…" Signed, Claudia Stanfield
1. Chapter 1

**Oc story. EdxOc. Yep, I went there. I know, I know, how cliché, but I hope to make this good. So yeah. Also, I tried to make my story as different as possible, because I get pissed when everything is the same. I have spent ages thinking over the logic and reasoning in this, and it should be explained as the story progresses. If you have any Q's, leave a review or PM me, and I'll answer (hopefully). **

**ALSO, I've named the chapters after a song, and I'll put the artists name next to it. They won't be random though, they will be a suitable name for the chapter. **

**Well, this A/N is already far longer than I care to have it. Enjoy, I guess.**

Chapter 1: Home (Gabrielle Aplin)

Roy Mustang rapped his knuckles across the wooden door of the automail engineer's home in Resembool. He heard the creak of floorboards, and he looked down to see Riza Hawkeye's goddaughter slowly edging further and further behind him, swallowing visibly.

_She's very shy with new people,"_ Mustang remembered Riza telling him when he was first introduced to the eleven year old. She had been hiding behind Riza, much like how she was hiding behind him at the moment.

Riza noticed this, and frowned gently at her. "What's wrong? You did want to come, didn't you?"

"Yes…" she whispered, although she had gone very pale.

Just then, the door opened to reveal a short elderly lady with spectacles balanced on her nose.

"Yes?"  
Mustang pushed the door open wider and stormed right in.

"Hey, what is this!"

Though momentarily forgotten, Mustang still had the image of what the Elric brothers had done freshly imprinted into his mind, making him seethe with rage.

Noticing his dark mood, the already shy eleven year old stumbled back a few steps until she was now shielded from any upcoming wrath behind Riza, who also was walking into the house with the signature military stride, but not without giving her a comforting smile.

"It's okay, Claudia."

The old lady - Pinako Rockbell – was still barking at Mustang, clearly unimpressed.

"You have no reason to come barging in here!"

If Mustang was affected by her words, he didn't show it. His line of sight then landed on two figures; a blond boy in a wheelchair missing two of his limbs, and a tall suit of armour, standing just behind him.

Claudia stifled a gasp, and her hand flew up to her mouth. She knew it had been bad, but not _this_ bad. The boy in the wheelchair, Edward, she presumed, had his head bowed, but she could see how dimmed his eyes were. It was like something had died inside him.

Mustang grabbed his shirt and pulled him right up into the air.

"We went to your house; we saw the floor. What was that? What did you do!"

She couldn't…he was being too harsh. She ran forward and grabbed his spare arm.

"No, don't… please, leave them alone."

Mustang glared at Claudia coldly. "There was a reason I didn't let you into the basement. Do you know what I saw there?"

The question was rhetorical, but she had to physically bite down on her tongue to stop herself from answering, and slowly let go of his wrist. _Yes_.

Ed's face was crumpling, and the suit of armour, Alphonse, put his big metal hand on Mustang's shoulder.

"We-we didn't mean it. We made a mistake….we're sorry…we're sorry…we're sorry…"

The armour started trembling slightly, and Claudia was pretty sure that if armour could cry, it would have big, fat tears rolling down his helmet.

Mustang looked at the armour with sudden realisation. "Are you…?"

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Claudia held a cup of warm, milky tea and shifted uncomfortably in her chair. Despite it being hard and wooden, it wasn't the source of her discomfort. She felt like she was intruding on something she shouldn't have, but Mustang had asked her to stay. Riza was sitting on the couch in the other room, and she was pretty sure Winry was talking to her now.

Mustang was sat back in his chair, arms crossed and a stern look on his face.

"This is a surprise to say the least. I'd heard reports of a brilliant alchemist living in this town, so I came to check them out. The last thing I expected to find was a boy skilled enough to attempt human transmutation," He paused for a second, glancing up at Al. "Or advanced enough to bond a soul to a suit of armour."

He paused again, this time directing his speech to Pinako. "I'd say he's more than qualified to become a State Alchemist."

Claudia listened as Mustang explained what it meant to be a State Alchemist, but soon her mind drifted as it always did, and she started gazing around the Rockbell residence.

It was far bigger than she thought it would be, and much brighter too, filled with the usual furniture that a family household had, although there was the odd bit of automail parts scattered here and there. Her eyes then rested on the big pin board by the green front door, with many photos stuck to it. Upset that it was far away, Claudia tried to make out some of the figures…

"Claudia, please stop daydreaming."

She blinked, and felt her checks get hot. She hadn't meant to seem rude, but she couldn't help that she had the world's shortest attention span.

Mustang sighed, and looked at Pinako, and Claudia realised that while she had been spacing out, Ed and Al had left, leaving only the old woman.

She bowed her head slightly, and apologised quietly. "I'm so sorry; I hope you don't think I was being rude."

Pinako chuckled slightly. "It's fine, young lady. There are plenty of daydreamers in this household, including me."

Mustang cleared his throat. "Anyway, Miss Rockbell, this is Claudia Stanfield, my subordinate's goddaughter. She was wondering-"

"Ah, you hush up! Let her speak." Pinako then turned to Claudia with kind eyes. "Whatcha wondering, hmm?"

Claudia looked down at her thumbs, which were still gripped around her, now cold, tea. It didn't matter, she hated tea. "I was wondering…if I could stay here to study automail, and maybe some chemistry and biology for a year …"

Pinako blinked. "You want to become an automail engineer?"

Claudia snapped her head up, and started shaking it vigorously. "Oh no! I just – I don't have a very good understanding of mechanisms and I really want to improve."

Pinako smiled, and tapped her pipe against her ashtray. "I don't see why not. If fact, it's a perfect opportunity seeing as Ed is most likely going to demand for automail limbs."

In a normal situation like this, Claudia would have been beaming widely, gushing out 'thank you's and probably hugging the old lady. However, this time she only smiled a little at Pinako. "Is there anything I can help you with when I'm here?" It was the least she could do.

Letting a puff of smoke drift lazily out of her mouth, Pinako returned the smile. "Just some basic household chores, if you don't mind. Cooking, cleaning, the usual. I could always do with a hand. And you will to school with Winry until you leave."

Claudia couldn't believe that was all; this was way too easy. "No problem."

Mustang looked at her with a frowning face. "Will you be all right?"

She blinked a little at the Flame Alchemist. He was concerned about her? She had only known him a week, why was he worried? But then she reminded herself that she was Riza Hawkeye's goddaughter, and she nodded. "Yes, thanks."

"Very well." Mustang stood up, and made his way over to the door.

"I hope you study well, Claudia."

And with that, he was gone.

Claudia looked at the closed door, a usual feeling of nausea setting in her stomach. Her nerves were always jittery at new places and unfamiliarity, but hopefully it wouldn't last long. This was her home for the time being, she would just have to get used to it.

Pinako tipped the ash from her pipe into the ashtray before standing up.

"Come on. I'll show you to your room."

_I guess here they really don't care about stranger danger._

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_June 14__th__, 1910_

_It's been a month since I got here, and three days since I became a residence at the Rockbell's household. I haven't really spoken to anyone much, but I will probably become more comfortable in four more days time. _

_I started attending the school here yesterday, and everyone appears pleasant enough, but I am still very shy. Again, it will probably take a week before I become properly secure there. Also, I did give the fifteen other children in my class, including Winry Rockbell, full warning of my temper and informed them not to provoke me, but I think that 3 boys are trying to get a reaction from me, not believing that my temper is terrible, and that may be a problem._

_Edward Elric and Alphonse Elric do not attend the school anymore for obvious reasons, and I have yet to converse with them. Hopefully, in time that will change. It is wise to make as many allies as possible. Edward Elric has not mentioned automail yet. I have kept the artefact from 2014 hidden well, but I doubt that they will think it out of place here. _

_I am still trying to figure out how I got here, but hopefully their science, Riza Hawkeye's eye-witness account and logic will help me find the truth. Any theories that Truth was involved have been dismissed, as I had no possible way of contacting him or attempted anything to see the truth (not to mention I haven't lost any body parts or senses). _

_In other news, I have been portraying my eleven year old self perfectly, and I doubt that anyone (excluding Riza Hawkeye) suspects my true age. What am I saying, my true age is eleven. 11. XI. ELEVEN. I must not continue thinking I am fifteen, as I no longer am. I am eleven years old now. _

_I saw no reason to lie about my name to the Rockbell household either, so luckily I do not need to remind myself of a new identity. No, I am still Claudia Stanfield, but I have just de-aged by four years. That's all. _

_I miss them…_

_Signed, Claudia Stanfield._

**Well. That's that I guess. I was going to have a diary entry by Claudia at the end of each chapter so you can see a first POV, but I generally write better in 3****rd**** person. I did actually try 1****st**** POV, but it was shit.**

**NEXT TIME:**** Who's Laughing Now (Jessie J)**

**It will be about Claudia adjusting to living in the Rockbell household and development of Claudia, a little more about her, but there is an incidence at the school which is the main focus point with Ed's first impressions of her.**

**Later peeps.**


	2. Who's Laughing Now?

**I'm back. Whoop. Cool. Thank you for the reviews :). I don't really have anything else to say…BIGITY BAM!**

**Without further ado, READ.**

Chapter 2: Who's Laughing Now (Jessie J)

Claudia checked her pocket watchand sighed. It was near midnight, and she was no where near tired. It was probably because she was still so used to staying awake on her laptop or iPod at night.

She shifted in her bed, and tried to steady her breathing. The room she was sparsely decorated, being a spare room for patients and all, but there was a tree outside her window that was very good at casting shadows across the room in the moonlight. It infuriated her how anxious she got in the dark, there was no reason for her to be. And yet it was her worst fear, especially when she was alone, as it let her mind whisper questions to her that only lead to more anxiety.

Somewhere in the house a noisy drill suddenly sounded, starting Claudia and the whispery voices seized the moment to scare their victim.

_I bet anything that it's a serial killer,_ one thought stated.

_I think that it must be someone torturing a human, that's the only explanation_, another added.

Lying face down on her pillow, Claudia focused on logically answering the whispery questions that buzzed around her mind. It usually worked, although she was going to be like the walking dead in the morning. But it was Ok. She had gotten used to it.

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Lying in the small hospital bed, Ed tried to ignore the throbbing in his right shoulder. It still needed the bandages changed every three days, but it just made Ed feel more and more miserable every time it happened. It reminded him of the taboo he and Al had done.

A small knock at the door pushed away his thoughts. It had to be Winry with his breakfast; she always came with a tray of food whenever he was stuck in the room.

"Yes?"

The door opened, and with surprise Ed realised that it was actually the girl who started staying with them a little over a week ago, Claudia. He didn't really know what to make of her; she hardly ever spoke, and when she did it was in soft whispers, which was a bit annoying. She had long, dark blonde hair that fell around her shoulders, and big, light green eyes, which, again, was a little annoying. It seemed almost that she wanted people to think she was cute.

"Um, I have your breakfast." Her voice, for the first time, was above a whisper, and clear

"Oh. Thanks."

After handing him the tray, she sat on a stool near his bed, waiting for him to finish. Silence fell over the room, until...

"What's your favourite colour?"

Ed snapped his head up from his food, eyebrows raised. "What?" He asked incredulously.

Claudia repeated her question.

It was odd. The first question she asked him wasn't 'How did you loose your limbs', or 'How come your brother is in a suit of armour', or even 'How are you', it was for his favourite _colour_. The idea seemed so random and silly, he just wanted to laugh at it. Claudia looked at him expectantly. "Well?"

"Red, I think. Yeah, I like red."

"Why?"

Why? Did she need a reason? "Um, I dunno. It just looks really cool. What about you?" he added on, spooning a mouthful of oatmeal into his mouth.

"Rainbow."

He promptly chocked on it. "Rainbow?" He spluttered.

If his actions had surprised her, she didn't show it. Instead she was looking dreamily at the ceiling, as if imaging the colourful arch. "Yeah."

"But-but rainbow isn't a colour! It's a collection of different colours!"

Claudia frowned at him, almost as if she was offended he would even suggest such a thing. "Turquoise is a collection of blue and green, but people still class it as an individual colour, so I class rainbow as its own colour." She then crossed her arms, almost challenging him to question her logic.

Ed didn't know how to answer that, so he turned his attention back to his breakfast. Then scowled.

"What is it?"

"Milk," he growled, staring daggers at said beverage. "When will they just realise that I hate it?" he muttered, picking up the bottle with much distaste.

He looked at Claudia with a frown. "You're going to make me drink it, aren't you?"

"No."

Ok, that surprised him. Almost every morning since he could remember, he and Winry had argued about him drinking it, before he finally gave in, not wanting to die by getting beaten to pulp by a girl. And yet, she just simply said he didn't have to.

"Huh?"

She laughed at his astonishment. "I don't like milk either; I'm not going to force you to drink it. Here," she said, indicating for him to hand the bottle over, which he did. She walked over to the small sink in the clinic, and tipped it down the sink.

"Did you know, humans weren't actually designed to digest milk from other animals? It took years of throwing it up before their stomachs could deal with it."

"Um…no."

What was up with this girl? She barley speaks to him, and then starts demanding what his favourite colour is and telling him facts about milk? What an oddball.

Returning with the now empty bottle, Claudia nodded at his half eaten oatmeal. "Besides, there's plenty of milk in there anyway, I doubt that not drinking the small bottle will severally affect you."

Ed almost spat out his mouthful of food. "There's milk in this?"

Claudia smiled. "Yes, I thought it was obvious. But just because something has milk in it doesn't mean it's disgusting. Lots of yummy things have milk. Cake, cookies, custard, ice cream…"

Then she furrowed her brow and looked thoughtful. "I'm cooking dinner tonight. How about I make sure that milk is in everything and prove to you that milk tastes good in other things? Yes, I'll do that! Are you finished? Oh, good you are. Well, I hope you like dinner!"

And on that final note, she picked up the tray and left, leaving Ed gobsmacked.

_What just happened?_

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A bell rang, throughout the small school building, signalling the beginning of lunch, and kids from every classroom streamed outside to enjoy the sunshine. Claudia joined them, not before tripping over a deliberately stuck out leg by a boy in her class, Dylan Masons. He had a snub nose dotted with freckles, sandy brown hair and crooked teeth, which were now bared in a smile. "Sorry, didn't see you there _pipsqueak_."

He then howled with laughter, as she picked herself off the ground and dusted herself off. She then offered him a very strained smile, picking up the pile of automail books she was currently reading. "People make mistakes. But I would prefer it if you didn't call me pipsqueak, it's not very nice."

Dylan scoffed. "I'll call you what I like, squirt." He sauntered away, and two boys, his two sidekicks, pushed in front of her roughly, knocking her armful of books back onto the floor. Hearing the clatter, they both turned back around to see her back on her knees picking them up again, and chortled. "Later, pipsqueak!"

A week. They had been doing this constantly for a _week_. She knew they were trying to see if her temper was as bad as she claimed it to be, but that didn't stop her on wanting to slug them in the face. Well, they wouldn't have to wait much longer. Her temper was rising quickly, and she was well beyond the point of caring what she would do to them.

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The headmistress, Mrs Comstock, looked over her report, and raised her eyebrows at the eleven year old girl sitting in the chair opposite her. She had had many children sit in that chair if they had caused problem at her school, usually scared stiff with a look of terror on their face. She had never had a child match her gaze with a steely one of their own.

Placing her papers down on her desk, Mrs Comstock interlaced her fingers and placed her pointed chin atop of them, looking down at the girl through her horned glasses.

"Miss Stanfield. You have attended this school for a mere week, and already wrecked havoc at the calm atmosphere maintained here. Why did you see it fit to bite another student?"

This was usually when a student burst into tears and started making excuses and begging for forgiveness, but Claudia Stanfield did none of those things. Instead, she crossed her arms and glared at the teacher. "I will answer that question once you have answered why this school apparently accepts bullying."

Mrs Comstock spluttered. "I beg your pardon, young lady!"

"Ever since I got here, three boys have been tormenting me daily, mainly Dylan Masons, even after I gave everyone in the class full warning and knowledge on how bad my temper is. Because this could be considered a form of bullying, I reported this to a member of staff on duty during lunch break two days ago, who simply told me to ignore it and made no action to stop it."

The headmistress felt her checks get hot with anger. "I still do not see why you thought it was right to bite him!"

"I didn't, but I do reckless things when I'm angry, as I'm sure we all do."

"That boy," Mrs Comstock spat, "needs stitches! I demand that you at least apologise to him right away!"

"No."

"_What_?"

"I said no. I am in no mood for apologising, as I do not feel sorry for my actions. But, don't worry; I get the worst guilt trips, and I assure you that very soon I will be a sobbing mess, begging for forgiveness."

Mrs Comstock had now turned an ugly shade of purple, and pointed to the door. "GET OUT!"

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Ed looked at Winry aghast. "She _bit_ him?"

Winry nodded, worry spelled out all over her face. "Yes, he's coming over, actually. Granny's going to stitch him up."

"_He needs stitches_?"

"Yes. Claudia bit him hard on his left forearm, and he's going to have a nasty crescent scar on each side."

"But _why_?"

"Because that's what happens when you get stitches, Ed. Come on, you should know this."

He waved his hand in dismissal. "No, no, I meant why did she bite him?"

Winry shifted on her seat, and fingered the hem of her skirt, a habit she did when she was anxious. "Well, on her first day, Claudia warned the whole class about her temper during recess, but she said it so casually with a small smile on her face and a casual laugh, no one took her seriously. Then Dylan,"

"He just had to get his stuck up nose involved, the little bastard." Ed muttered.

"Ed! Don't swear. Anyway, Dylan and his friends starting tormenting her, stuff like tripping her up, calling her names, pulling her hair, the usual. She eventually told a teacher during lunch on Wednesday, but that didn't do _anything_. She finally snapped when Dylan ripped up her school books."

Ed sat back in his wheelchair. "That would piss me off, all right. I'm guessing they were deliberately trying to get a reaction out of her?"

"Seems like it." Winry paused, before asking uncertainly. "Ed…"  
"Hm? Yeah, what?"

"Do…do you think she's…dangerous?"

Bringing his hand to his mouth, he thought hard, frowning slightly. "I dunno. I haven't spent enough time with her to tell. I mean, this morning was the first time she's spoken to me directly. And she asked me was what my favourite _colour_ was."

Winry laughed a little at that. "She asked me the same thing first time she spoke to me. I've talked to her a bit more than you have, but she seems nice. Very smiley and cheerful, if a bit shy. This is the last thing I ever expected her to do."

Ed looked at the door, through which Pinako was talking to Claudia and Dylan.

"I guess sometimes you just have to expect the unexpected."

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Dylan lay on the clinic bed, arm aching but sewn up, still in shock. Usually when people said they had a bad temper they meant that the shouted a lot, not that they had a tendency to bite people. He truly hadn't meant to upset her _that_ much, but his arrogance got the better of him. Sighing, he inspected his arm. _I guess I deserve this much_, he thought. At least he would have some pretty cool scars once it had healed.

He shifted onto his side, and stared at the window near the ceiling. It was too high up to get a proper view, but it did show that it was late. He was staying overnight, just in case his arm got infected, but there was no way he could sleep.

There was a knock at his door, and it opened a crack. "Dylan?"

He sat up quickly. "Claudia? What are you doing here?" He whispered. She was the last person he expected to see.

She stepped inside the room, and shut the door behind her. "Are…are you okay?"

Her voice came out wavering slightly, followed by a quick sniff.

"Why are you crying?"

She leant against the wall near the door, a slid down until she was sitting on the floor, hugging her knees. Although it was dark, the room was illuminated by moonlight, and he could see her tiny figure, blonde hair silvery.

"Because…because I feel really bad about what happened. I'm sorry…I'm so sorry."

There were a few chocked sobs after that.

"Ah, don't cry. You did give me warning, but I was dumb enough to ignore it. I should be the one saying sorry, not you."

"I bit your arm!"

"I annoyed you."

He heard a sigh, and a shuffle as Claudia pulled her knees in tighter. "I'm an idiot."

"What?"

"The way I just loose control in situation like this, it's so stupid! I have no reason to get as mad as I do, but it still happens." She sighed a little irritably. "It brings nothing but consequences."

Dylan suddenly remembered something. "Oh yeah! What did old Comstock do to you?"

"I got excluded."

"What? But – but the school didn't even bother to help!"

Claudia let off a small, humourless laugh. "I think it was because I answered back."

"Huh?"

She looked at him, and her eyes reflected in the dark, like a cat's, and he could tell she was smiling a little. "In her office, I think she expected me to start sobbing and apologising on the spot, but instead I said I wouldn't apologise until I felt like it and that the school accepted bullying."

A lump of guilt formed in Dylan's gut. "Yeah, sorry about, um, all that. But wow, you have guts to say that to her; you'll go down in school history!"

Her reply was far more miserable than he expected it to be, and he could tell that the smile had been wiped clean off. "Just what I always wanted."

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_June 24__th__, 1910_

_I was excluded from the school after just a week of attendance. The three boys were mocking my height (which I still haven't fully gotten used to) as well as pulling my hair, tripping me over, and other pointless tasks until I snapped and bit the lead boy, Dylan Masons, arm. I know it was very immature of me, and I am ashamed that I let my temper take control of me. It disgusts me. It angers me more that it is just me overreacting._

_I unfortunately went out of character when I was talking to Mrs Brenda Comstock, the headmistress, and I talked to her like I was her equal, rather than a child. Oh well, she probably just thought I was being rude._

_However, in better news I have conversed with Edward Elric, and it went well, and Winry Rockbell is friendly with me. I have not talked with Alphonse Elric as much as the other two, although he was kind enough to mend my damaged books with alchemy, although they are worthless to me now. Despite my little trip up, Pinako Rockbell has been kind enough to allow me to continue my independent studies under her roof, but I have to cook, clean and wash without any assistance for a week. This should be no problem; in fact I am almost pleased I do not need to waste eight hours a day relearning basic knowledge. I am yet to begin studying alchemy, but automail, despite being a little complicated, is fairly straightforward. _

_I have called Riza Hawkeye in private and informed her on what happened. Despite being a little annoyed, she received the news better that first thought. I am glad she has become my "godmother" for the time being, and it is nice that my appearance does not affect her talking to me like an adult. Being a child with her is no use, as it would just waste time. _

_I have been experiencing the usual anxiety during the night, but there is nothing I can do about it. The best I can do is ignore it. _

_I have not developed any new theories on my appearance here, but then again, I didn't expect to._

_Signed, Claudia Stanfield_

**God, this chapter took FOREVER to write. It's almost double what I wrote last time, but I hope it wasn't to fast pace. **

**NEXT TIME****: Nightmares (Chameleon Circuit)**

**Ed suffers from nightmares (duh) and finds out Claudia's fear for the dark. From this, the beginnings of a friendship starts to form. (Awwww, Like this isn't a little cliché!) Also stories. Lots of stories.**

**Oh, and a piano. :)**


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